A new two-year project entitled “Re-creation and building of capacities in Georgian ICT Research Institutes” (GEO-RECAP) was launched with a kick-off meeting in Tbilisi on 23 November 2010. GEO-RECAP is designed to support Georgia in enhancing the cooperative capacity of its ICT research centres and facilitate scientific cooperation between these centres and the European research area (ERA).

Georgia is currently in a period of reform. Analysis shows that the current weaknesses in the country’s research system are:

a haak impact on the socio-economic conditions.

In this respect it is very important to improve the structure and profile of scientific research institutions, to develop strategies to reorganize the research institutes into “European style organizations” and to elaborate new funding models in particular with regard to international programmes and projects.

Two Georgian ICT research centres, LEPL N. Muskhelishvili Institute of Computational Mathematics (MICM) and Institute of Cybernetics (IC), both members of the GEO-RECAP consortium, possess strong potential in ICT and applied mathematics. Until the late eighties both institutes were involved in solving the socio-economic problems of the country. In the nineties and at the beginning of this century, stagnation in this field was even more evident.

However, the imminence of reform, together with the increasingly pragmatic attitude of Georgian authorities to the future development of the country motivates us to intensify applied research and to increase our focus on innovative information communication technologies. We believe that GEO-RECAP’s main objective, the provision of support to MICM and IC, is achievable owing to collaboration with European partners such as the German Research Centre for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI) and GIRAF PM Services GmbH (both from Germany). Furthermore, ERCIM has excellent institutions in the ICT fields, and the local partner, International Centre for Advancement of Research, Technology & Innovation (ICARTI), has made substantial efforts to raise awareness of Georgian scientists about the 7th Framework Programme and other collaboration facilities with the ERA.

The main objectives of GEO-RECAP will be achieved through two networking and training events: The first networking event will be held in Budapest on 4-6 May 2011, and will coincide with the FET11, the European Future Technologies Conference and Exhibition. A second event will be organized in Tbilisi in 2012. Two training events will be held in Tbilisi in 2011 and 2012.

GEO-RECAP Expectations The expected outcome of the project is the following:

RTD capacity building in Georgia

enhanced participation of the country in the 7th Framework Programme

increased scope of MICM and IC with increased linkage with the economic and social environment

increased job opportunities in the country for young scientists

increased scientific cooperation between the ERA and Georgian ICT centres.

GEO-RECAP is supported by the EU FP7 Capacities Work programme 2010; Activity 7.6. Integrating Europe’s neighbours into the ERA; Area INCO.2010-6.1: Eastern Europe and South Caucasus. ERCIM is a partner in the project.